Please help! cactus turning yellow

Please help! cactus turning yellow

Wed Sep 06, 2017 3:58 pm

Hi hi! I have a small cactus (about 4cm tall) that isn't doing so well and I'm have no idea what's wrong with it. My sisters gave it to me as a gift. It's been doing well for the past two years, up until this summer when it started turning yellow from the base (since I took the picture yesterday, the very bottom has started turning pinkish). I thought it might be rot because it is somewhat soft, so I took it out of the pot but it isn't as squishy/smelly as expected. My previous cactus died of rot/overwatering, so I've been really careful with this one, only watering it once every two weeks and making sure the pot has a drainage hole.

I also considered corking, but it doesn't seem hard enough and the cactus has shriveled some. I've also wondered if it's just general stress (I'm a university student so I had to take it home for the summer and bring it back to school).

So I'd like to know 1) what the problem might be and 2) if there's a way to save him. Any help would be much appreciated!!

Re: Please help! cactus turning yellow

Tue Sep 12, 2017 7:20 pm

Do you know the name of your cactus? Yellow on bottom is no problem.

There are basically 2 types of cactus, low elevation desert cactus and high elevation wet weather cactus. If you have a desert cactus it is most likely water sensitive. If you have a mountain cactus it most likely can take, snow, ice, wind, rain, blizzard, and 100 degree weather too.

No matter which cactus you have they both like slightly moist soil but not bone dry flower pots. Desert soil and mountain soil never get totally dry as dust down deep there is always continuous moisture in the soil. Letting a flower pot go completely dry for 2 weeks is not good.

Mix about 80% child play sand with about 20% yard soil. Mix well re pot your cactus in a larger pot at lease 2 times larger. When you water your plant you want the water to turn right through the pot and out the bottom. You want soil to be moist but not soaking wet.

You need to feed your plant just like you would any other plant. Get a fertilizer with = amounts of NPK give some to your cactus about once every month.

If you have a mountain cactus you will not hurt it giving it too much water as long as all the extra water runs out the bottom of the pot and the soil is not soaking wet.

If you have a desert cactus be careful give it a good drink of water the first day then 1 tablespoon of water every day for 2 weeks, then 1 tablespoon of water once a week. An ice cube works very well to water your cactus set it on the soil next to the plant and let it melt.

Cactus can tolerate some of the worse weather conditions in the world but that does not mean they like it. Cactus will do best if it gets only 4 hours of sun every day, it does not need full sun all day. Cactus does best in 75 degree weather. Set your cactus outside in the yard under a shade tree for a month it will love it.

Re: Please help! cactus turning yellow

Sat Sep 16, 2017 12:12 am

Thanks for the advice! The cactus really wasn't doing so well so I removed the yellow part and I'm hoping it will grow new roots. I'm definitely using different soil in the future because I think the peat soil was clumping on the roots and ended up dehydrating the plant.